In a Country Where Widows Abound and Suffer

  28 minutes

  27 July 2019

A widow or widower is someone who loses their life partner. Being a widow in Afghanistan means being alone, hated and even guilty. When a woman loses her husband at a young age, she not only faces economic problems, but also a change in the way society, her husband's family and, in some cases, her own paternal family treat her. Superstitious beliefs in the community restrict her even more.
The word "widow" usually has a negative derogatory connotation in oral culture. This comes from a male-dominated society where men see themselves as superior to women. It is true, the word "widow" or “widower” means a woman or a man who has lost their spouse, but in our society the connotation for a woman is entirely different than for a man. Actually, no one calls a man whose wife died a widower.

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